Historic Garden & Architecture

The same fruit trees, flowers, shrubbery, berries and vines that flourished in the 1840's decorate our award-winning garden today.

As early as 1849, visitors to the Curran Hall gardens commented on the roses, native flowers, exotic shrubbery, and arbors with vines, fruits, and berries. Original landscaping included a wide variety of hardy Southern trees, shrubs, vines, and bulbs. Fruit trees and berries were also mentioned in period articles.

Today's Curran Hall features a garden landscape designated as the Marjem Ward Jackson Historic Garden. In developing a landscape plan to fit both the antebellum house and its 21st century adaptive use, the designer included styles and plant stock that were appropriate to Little Rock in the 1840s, but are also hardy and easy to maintain in a public setting.

In full bloom, the garden is breath-taking and is lovingly maintained by the Pulaski County Master Gardeners. Awarded the University of Arkansas Division of Agricultural Award as well as the Little Rock City Beautiful Commission Award, the Curran Hall garden attracts tour groups and visitors from all over the world.

Architecture

Curran Hall was constructed in 1842 in the Greek Revival style adapted to a Southern frontier setting. The symmetrical, one-story house has a central hall with a large room opening to each side. Walls are three bricks thick. The original narrow front porch has been fully restored. The hip roof, covered with wood shakes, included cypress box gutters. Four square columns supported an entablature with bold dentil trim. Few houses of this era remain with so few interior alterations.

A children's playhouse was also constructed in 1848. About 1960, the current playhouse was reconstructed using materials from various historic Little Rock houses.